Living Steele

Emily spent the next day thinking. She was still surprised about David's sudden disappearance, the way Alexander acted on the rooftop, and now Isabella's decoded words– it all felt like a bad dream. She couldn't trust anyone, not even her own thoughts.

The late afternoon sun cast long shadows across the room when Alexander finally arrived. He was not looking so pleased, His face remained unreadable,a mask that offered no clues to his emotions. He checked on her ankle with practiced efficiency, but his touch felt cold and distant.

"How are you feeling?" he asked, his voice lacking all sort of warmth.

Emily bit back a sharp retort. "Fine," she said very carefully . "Just… confused."

Alexander paused, his gaze flickered across her face. He seemed to hesitate, then sighed. "We need to talk," he said finally. "About what happened last night."

Emily's heart started hammering in her chest. This was it. "Yes," she agreed, her voice barely a whisper. "We need to talk.."

Alexander pulled up a